Barack Obama had just learned he had won the election and was turning his thoughts to cabinet appointments when the phone rang.
“Funny,” he thought, ” I didn’t think anybody had this number.”
“Hello.”
“Good Morning Mr. President-elect. This is the Secretary of Magic speaking. We need to meet as soon as possible!”
Somewhere in the back of his mind he had known this call was coming. But so soon!
“Sure, what time is good for you?”
“Right now is fine, if you’re decent.”
“Where shall I meet you?”
“I’ll be right there!”
With a dramatic whooshing sound, orange light and the smell of pine, an Iriquois clan-mother of the Turtle clan appeared in the room. She smudged the four directions with smouldering sage and chanted a blessing, then turned to face the president-to-be and fixed his eyes with hers.
“As you know, I am the one member of your cabinet that you do not appoint. We’ve had a dreadful time with the last administration and are trusting you to set things to right. The magical balance has been upset and Mr. Bush ignored all my recommendations, even when I used flue powder to bring evidence right into the White House and used magical beasts to demonstrate the truth. I am in touch with the British Minister of Magic and all the other magical functionaries from around the Earth, and we are agreed that there is no time to waste. The Death-Eaters are massing to take control, and there are certain actions you will need to perform even before you take office. This isn’t just about the human suffering that the economic crisis and the wars will cause, it’s about the fate of all life on this planet. First, you’ve got to go to the UN Conferences on Climate Change in Poland in December and in Copenhagen in January, and you’ve got to propose effective actions there! You’re going to need a strong Secretary of the Environment; I suggest Bill McKibben. And you’re going to need to call for a cabinet-level Secretary of Peace to solve international disputes without resorting to military force; I suggest Dennis Kucinich. Whoever you choose for Secretaary of State needs to be experienced in diplomacy, but that’s just a start; he or she will need to be educated in nonviolent national defense… read Gandhi and Freund for a start… learn about Shanti Sena. You’ll have to re-purpose the Defense Department to defend people domestically rather than attack people in foreign lands. Oh and you’ll have to pardon Mumia Abu Jamal and make him your press secretary. And free Leonard Peletier and get him some decent medical attention. There’s so much to do; you must start now. I’ll be back every morning to talk about the progress you’re making. It’s time to part for now. You’ll remember these little chats as dreams and brainstorms, but you won’t remember me… all the ideas will seem to come from you, and you’ll get credit for the successes, but I place spell on you that you will be haunted by these thoughts until you act upon them in concrete ways.”
With a whoosh, she was gone.